In the UK, it is estimated that 850,000 people live with dementia. By 2025 this number is expected to reach one million, and two million by the year 2051.

This feasibility study will explore the different dimensions associated with effectively supporting elderly people using off-the-shelf robots and monitoring them for signs of frailty (including dementia) to help provide timely interventions. It will research currently available smart off-the-shelf robots that can be easily integrated into existing home environments to help automate and monitor the daily lives of the elderly for signs of frailty. These robots are capable of supporting the elderly by performing various physical tasks. The patterns of interacting with these robots and supporting systems could reveal signs of mental and physical frailty.

This research will directly engage with potential elderly end-users to better understand their requirements and the challenges they face and could hinder the integration of robots in their environments through a series of semi-structured interviews. It will also survey the current social and environmental challenges and limitations of the current technologies, and propose recommendations on how to overcome them using evidence-based approaches.

The study will help initiate a co-design process with both elderly people and professional carers of people living in frailty to overcome identified challenges and help propose a framework for integrating off-the-shelf robots and devices while maintaining the confidentiality of end users’ information.

The study aims to create a network of interdisciplinary researchers to better understand the limitations of the current off-the-shelf robots and supporting services and identify the research gaps associated with supporting elderly citizens with frailty.